Atlantic Ocean: Submarine hydrocarbons: …the United States, revenues from offshore leases have been one of the largest sources of federal income, and receipts from offshore production have been important for the economies of the United Kingdom and Norway since the 1970s.

permafrost: Permafrost zones: …is known as subsea or offshore permafrost.

offshoring, the practice of outsourcing operations overseas, usually by companies from industrialized countries to less-developed countries, with the intention of reducing the cost of doing business. Chief among the specific reasons for locating operations outside a corporation’s home country are

Jafar Panahi: First films: The White Balloon and Circle: Offside (2006) centers on six young female soccer fans who try to sneak into a qualifying match for the World Cup between Iran and Bahrain on June 8, 2005. Women are prohibited from attending sporting events in Iran, so the fans disguise themselves as men.…

football: Rules: …came in 1925, when the offside rule was rewritten. Previously, an attacking player (i.e., one in the opponent’s half of the playing field) was offside if, when the ball was “played” to him, fewer than three opposing players were between him and the goal. The rule change, which reduced the…

Nebraska: Statehood and growth: In 1948 this location, renamed Offutt Air Force Base, became the headquarters of the Strategic Air Command (now U.S. Strategic Command), which stimulated the growth of the greater Omaha area.

Juan Perón: Early life and career: …of colonel, and joined the United Officers Group (Grupo de Oficiales Unidos; GOU), a secret military lodge that engineered the 1943 coup that overthrew the ineffective civilian government of Argentina. The military regimes of the following three years came increasingly under the influence of Perón, who had shrewdly requested for…

Rosario Castellanos: …novel, Oficio de tinieblas (1962; The Book of Lamentations), re-creates an Indian rebellion that occurred in the city of San Cristóbal de las Casas in the 19th century, but Castellanos sets it in the 1930s, when her own family suffered from the reforms brought about by Lázaro Cárdenas del Rio…

Spain: Prehistory: …such as El Argar and El Oficio (Almería), where the richest women were adorned with silver diadems while their male consorts were equipped with bronze swords, axes, and polished pottery. At Fuente-Álamo (Almería) the elite lived apart from the village, in square stone houses with round granaries and a water…

Chris Ofili is a British painter and sculptor known for his multilayered paintings that marry the sacred with the profane. Ofili gained notoriety early in his career for his controversial use of elephant dung and provocative imagery, but his work transcends shock value. It draws from a wide range

ofrenda, decorated altar set up in homes for the Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) holiday as celebrated in Mexico and neighboring parts of Latin America as well as across the United States. This distinctive offering table, constructed especially for the holiday, honors and welcomes the deceased

2026 Milano Cortina Olympics: Athletes to Watch: Jens Lurås Oftebro: Jens Lurås Oftebro is a leading competitor in the Nordic combined, which comprises ski jumping and cross-country skiing elements. Oftebro had a strong 2025–26 season leading up to the Milano Cortina Games, winning three events on the World Cup circuit. Those results earned him the…

oganesson (Og), a synthetic transuranium element with the atomic number 118 that is a member of the noble gases, or Group 18 (VIIIA), of the periodic table. First synthesized in 2002, it is the heaviest element yet produced and is highly radioactive, with isotopes that decay in less than a

Ögödei was the son and successor of the Mongol ruler Genghis Khan, who greatly expanded the Mongol Empire. The third son of Genghis, Ögödei succeeded his father in 1229. He was the first ruler of the Mongols to call himself khagan (“great khan”); his father used only the title khan. He made his

Ogaden, arid region of eastern Ethiopia. It occupies the barren plain between the Somalia-Ethiopia border and the Ethiopian Eastern Highlands (on which Harer and Dire Dawa are situated). The major river of the region is the Shebeli, fed by ephemeral streams. At the southwestern edge of the Ogaden

Ethiopia: Winds of change: …also removed Ginbot 7, the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), and the OLF from its list of organizations deemed to be terrorist groups. In August the ONLF declared a cease-fire, and in October the government and the group signed a peace agreement that was intended to end the hostilities that…

Ōgaki, city, Gifu ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan, on the Ibi River. The site was settled in prehistoric times, but the present city developed around the castle built in 1535. Since the end of the Meiji period (1868–1912), Ōgaki has become a textile and chemical centre aided by abundant

aquifer: Recharge: Similarly, the massive Ogallala Aquifer of the Great Plains in the United States no longer receives the water recharge from the Rocky Mountains that formed it during the Pliocene Epoch (5.3 million to 2.6 million years ago). The use of such water, which is not being recharged under…

ogham writing, alphabetic script dating from the 4th century ad, used for writing the Irish and Pictish languages on stone monuments; according to Irish tradition, it was also used for writing on pieces of wood, but there is no material evidence for this. In its simplest form, ogham consists of

oganesson: Discovery and recognition: …it oganesson for Russian physicist Yuri Oganessian, who led the group at Dubna that discovered it and several of the other heaviest transuranium elements. The name oganesson was approved by IUPAC in November 2016.

oganesson (Og), a synthetic transuranium element with the atomic number 118 that is a member of the noble gases, or Group 18 (VIIIA), of the periodic table. First synthesized in 2002, it is the heaviest element yet produced and is highly radioactive, with isotopes that decay in less than a

oganesson: Relativistic effects and half-life: The longest-lived known isotope, oganesson-294, has an estimated half-life (the time required for half of the radioactive atoms to decay into a more stable form) of less than a millisecond. Because it exists for such a brief time and can be produced only in particle accelerators, oganesson has no…

Soviet Union: The Interregnum: Andropov and Chernenko: …dynamic chief of staff, Marshal Nikolay Ogarkov, was moved sideways and replaced by Marshal Sergey Akhromeyev, another formidable soldier. Ogarkov was blamed for his aggressive promotion of the SS-20 missile program and for the shooting down of a Korean jet, Flight 007, with 269 passengers and crew on board, after…

Aleksandr Ivanovich Herzen: Early life.: Herzen and his friend Nikolay Ogaryov, who, like Herzen, was influenced by the heroic libertarianism of the German playwright Friedrich Schiller, took a solemn oath to devote their lives to continuing the Decembrists’ struggle for freedom in Russia.

Bonin Islands, some 30 volcanic islands and islets in the central Pacific Ocean, about 500 miles (800 km) southeast of Japan. They can be divided into three main groups: Chichijima (Beechey) Group: Ani and Chichi islands; Mukojima (Parry) Group: Muko Island; and Hahajima (Baily) Group: Haha Island.

Ogata Kōrin was a Japanese artist of the Tokugawa period (1603–1868), regarded, along with Sōtatsu, as one of the masters of the Sōtatsu-Kōetsu school of decorative painting. He is particularly famous for his screen paintings, lacquerwork, and textile designs. Kōrin was descended from a samurai

Ogata Kenzan was a Japanese potter and painter, brother to the artist Ogata Kōrin. He signed himself Kenzan, Shisui, Tōin, Shōkosai, Shuseidō, or Shinshō. Kenzan received a classical Chinese and Japanese education and pursued Zen Buddhism. At the age of 27 he began studying with the potter Ninsei

Ogata Kōrin was a Japanese artist of the Tokugawa period (1603–1868), regarded, along with Sōtatsu, as one of the masters of the Sōtatsu-Kōetsu school of decorative painting. He is particularly famous for his screen paintings, lacquerwork, and textile designs. Kōrin was descended from a samurai

Ogata Kōrin was a Japanese artist of the Tokugawa period (1603–1868), regarded, along with Sōtatsu, as one of the masters of the Sōtatsu-Kōetsu school of decorative painting. He is particularly famous for his screen paintings, lacquerwork, and textile designs. Kōrin was descended from a samurai

Golden Week, series of four holidays closely spaced together and observed at the end of April and beginning of May in Japan. The four holidays are Shōwa Day (April 29), Constitution Day (May 3), Greenery Day (May 4), and Children’s Day (May 5). Showa Day (Showa no Hi), first celebrated in 2007, is

Ogata Kenzan was a Japanese potter and painter, brother to the artist Ogata Kōrin. He signed himself Kenzan, Shisui, Tōin, Shōkosai, Shuseidō, or Shinshō. Kenzan received a classical Chinese and Japanese education and pursued Zen Buddhism. At the age of 27 he began studying with the potter Ninsei

Sakai Hōitsu: …Hundred Paintings by Kōrin) and Ogata-ryū ryakuin-fu (“Album of Simplified Seals in the Ogata Style”) in observance of the 100th anniversary of Kōrin’s death. These works were instrumental in making Kōrin’s art very influential posthumously. Apart from being a revivalist, Sakai became a very successful painter and haiku poet. The…

D.O. Fagunwa: …Ode Ninu Igbo Irunmale (1938; The Forest of a Thousand Daemons), was the first full-length novel published in the Yoruba language. His second novel, Igbo Olodumare (“The Forest of God”), was published in 1949. He also wrote Ireke Onibudo (1949; “The Sugarcane of the Guardian”), Irinkerindo Ninu Igbo Elegbeje (1954;…

Ogbomosho, town, Oyo state, southwestern Nigeria. It lies on the Plateau of Yorubaland (elevation 1,200 feet [366 m]) in an area of savanna and farmland and at the intersection of roads from Oyo, Ilorin, Oshogbo, and Ikoyi. Founded in the mid-17th century, it remained a minor outpost of the Yoruba

dika, (Irvingia gabonensis), tree of the family Irvingiaceae, native to western Africa, and its edible seeds. The seeds, commonly called dika nuts, are used principally for food and oil and in weight loss supplements. The fleshy fruit somewhat resembles the unrelated mango and is eaten fresh or

William Fielding Ogburn was an American sociologist known for his application of statistical methods to the problems of the social sciences and for his introduction of the idea of “cultural lag” in the process of social change. Ogburn was a professor at Columbia University (1919–27) and the

Tibet: Plant and animal life: …grow at high elevations), and ogchu (red flowers that grow in sandy regions).

batfish, any of about 60 species of fishes of the family Ogcocephalidae (order Lophiiformes), found in warm and temperate seas. Batfishes have broad, flat heads and slim bodies and are covered with hard lumps and spines. Some species have an elongated, upturned snout. Batfishes grow at most about

10 Animals With Evolutionary Traits Plucked Straight Out of a Nightmare: Red-Lipped Batfish: Red-lipped batfish (Ogcocephalus darwini) are by no means dangerous, but they are clearly a product of an evolutionary nightmare. This aptly named sea creature is found on ocean floors 3–76 meters deep and is known best for its bright red lips and the…

Ogden, city, seat (1852) of Weber county, northern Utah, U.S. It lies at the confluence of the Weber and Ogden rivers, just west of the Wasatch Range and east of the Great Salt Lake. The community began as a settlement developed around Fort Buenaventura, a log stockade with an irrigated garden

Western Kentucky University: Western Kentucky merged with Ogden College in 1928. Bowling Green College of Commerce was added in 1963. Three years later Western Kentucky was elevated to university standing.

William Johnson: …few dissents, he upheld, in Ogden v. Saunders (1827), state power to alleviate economic distress. Late in his life Johnson angered many in his state by his circuit court decision in Holmes v. United States (1832), rejecting state nullification of federal statutes.

Anna Cora Mowatt was an American playwright and actress, best known as the author of the satirical play Fashion. Born in France to American parents, Anna Ogden moved to New York City with her family when she was seven. As a child she exhibited a talent for acting and a precocious interest in

C.K. Ogden was a British writer and linguist who originated Basic English (q.v.), a simplified system of the English language intended as a uniform, standardized means of international communication. (Read H.L. Mencken’s 1926 Britannica essay on American English.) In 1912 Ogden founded an

C.K. Ogden was a British writer and linguist who originated Basic English (q.v.), a simplified system of the English language intended as a uniform, standardized means of international communication. (Read H.L. Mencken’s 1926 Britannica essay on American English.) In 1912 Ogden founded an

Baltimore Ravens: History: …draft selection was offensive lineman Jonathan Ogden, followed by linebacker Ray Lewis, who quickly became one of the most dominant players in the NFL and helped forge the Ravens’ reputation as a team known for its ferocious defense.

Peter Skene Ogden was a Canadian fur trader and a major explorer of the American West—the Great Basin, Oregon and northern California, and the Snake River country. He was the first to traverse the intermountain West from north to south. Ogden’s parents were American loyalists who had fled to Canada

theism: The idea of a finite God: …Charles Hartshorne and the theologian Schubert Ogden. Both these figures built upon some of the leading ideas of Alfred North Whitehead, an eminent mathematician and metaphysician. Philosophers and theologians who base their work on Whitehead’s metaphysical scheme dispute the nature of God’s presence within creation and the extent of God’s…

Sybil Ludington was an American Revolutionary War heroine, remembered for her valiant role in defense against British attack. Ludington was the daughter of Henry Ludington, a New York militia officer and later an aide to Gen. George Washington. According to accounts generally attributed to the

Cyrus McCormick: … in partnership with the mayor, William Ogden, who capitalized the venture with $50,000 of his own money. The first year, 800 machines were sold. More were sold the next year, and McCormick was able to buy out Ogden.

Cyrus McCormick: … in partnership with the mayor, William Ogden, who capitalized the venture with $50,000 of his own money. The first year, 800 machines were sold. More were sold the next year, and McCormick was able to buy out Ogden.

Ogdensburg, city and port, St. Lawrence county, northern New York, U.S. It lies on the St. Lawrence River, at the mouth of the Oswegatchie River and is linked to Ontario, Canada, by the Ogdensburg-Prescott International Bridge (1960). The site was settled in 1749 when Abbé François Picquet

Canada: World War II: …immediately concluded an agreement at Ogdensburg, New York, with the United States for the defense of North America. Moreover, Canada now stood in the forefront of the war. After Britain, it was (prior to the U.S. entry into the war in December 1941) the second most powerful of Germany’s adversaries.…

ancient Egyptian religion: Groupings of deities: …numerical ordering schemas included the Ogdoad (group of eight gods) of Hermopolis, which embodied the inchoate world before creation and consisted of four pairs of male and female deities with abstract names such as Darkness, Absence, and Endlessness. Here too the number was significant in itself, because at least six…

Guillaume du Bellay, seigneur de Langey: …most important work was the Ogdoades, a history of the rivalry between Francis I and Charles V. Only fragments remain: the first part, covering the years 1515–21, is written in Latin; the rest is in French and is incorporated in his brother Martin’s Mémoires (1569). The first four books of…

ogee clock, clock design that originated in the United States in the 1830s, distinguished by a wooden case whose front outer edges are curved into an S-shape (ogee curve). This shape is formed by the union of a convex and a concave line. A mass-produced variant of the shelf clock, the ogee clock

molding: Compound or composite: (2) The cyma reversa, or ogee—a projecting molding that is essentially a reversed cyma recta with ovolo above cavetto—is used for a crown or a base. (3) A bird’s beak, or thumb, molding is essentially similar to the cyma reversa, except that the upper convexity is separated…

tupelo: Major species: The ogeechee lime (N. ogeche) is a rarer North American tupelo that produces edible fruits and a fine honey.

history of publishing: Picture magazines: …read more than newspapers, produced Oggi Illustrato (founded 1945), thriving on not-too-sensational disclosures, and the elegant Epoca (founded 1950). Magazines similar to Life appeared in a number of other countries, such as Cruzeiro (founded about 1908) in Brazil and Perspektywy (founded 1969) in Poland, and still more that follow the…

alphabet: Runic and ogham alphabets: Runes, in all their varieties, may be regarded as the “national” script of the ancient North Germanic tribes. The origin of the name rune (or runic) is probably related to the fact that the ancient Germanic tribes, like many other peoples, attributed magic powers…

ogham writing, alphabetic script dating from the 4th century ad, used for writing the Irish and Pictish languages on stone monuments; according to Irish tradition, it was also used for writing on pieces of wood, but there is no material evidence for this. In its simplest form, ogham consists of

ogham writing, alphabetic script dating from the 4th century ad, used for writing the Irish and Pictish languages on stone monuments; according to Irish tradition, it was also used for writing on pieces of wood, but there is no material evidence for this. In its simplest form, ogham consists of

Oğuz, confederation of Turkic peoples whose homeland, until at least the 11th century ce, was the steppes of Central Asia and Mongolia. The Orhon inscriptions, describing an early Turkic people, probably refer to the Oğuz. The Seljuqs, who constituted one branch of the Oğuz, controlled an empire

Ogier The Dane, an important character in the French medieval epic poems called chansons de geste. His story is told in a cycle of these poems known as Geste de Doon de Mayence, which deals with the wars of the feudal barons against the emperor Charlemagne. The character of Ogier has a historical

Ogier The Dane, an important character in the French medieval epic poems called chansons de geste. His story is told in a cycle of these poems known as Geste de Doon de Mayence, which deals with the wars of the feudal barons against the emperor Charlemagne. The character of Ogier has a historical

John Ogilby was a British printer who was a pioneer in the making of road atlases; as a poet and translator he is chiefly remembered for being ridiculed by Dryden in MacFlecknoe and by Pope in the Dunciad. Ogilby’s early career as a dancing master and theatre owner in Ireland, crowned by the

Tasmania: Self-government and federation: …but the Labor premier (1934–39) Albert George Ogilvie outshone other Australian politicians in responding to the economic problems. One of his skills was obtaining federal grants to diminish Tasmania’s comparative poverty. Informed, wholehearted, and realistic in criticizing the Axis powers, Ogilvie might have challenged Lyons for national leadership had both…

David Ogilvy: …the helm, the firm of Ogilvy & Mather became one of the first advertising firms to go public. The company expanded throughout the 1970s and ’80s, and in 1989 it was bought by WPP Group PLC. Ogilvy was then made chairman of WPP, but he stepped down from that position…

David Ogilvy was a British advertising executive known for his emphasis on creative copy and campaign themes, and the founder of the agency of Ogilvy & Mather. Ogilvy was the son of a classics scholar and broker, but financial reverses left the family in straitened circumstance when he was a boy.

David Ogilvy was a British advertising executive known for his emphasis on creative copy and campaign themes, and the founder of the agency of Ogilvy & Mather. Ogilvy was the son of a classics scholar and broker, but financial reverses left the family in straitened circumstance when he was a boy.

Kabuki: Subject, purpose, and conventions: …a lively dance finale (ōgiri shosagoto) with a large cast.

Benin: …dynasty of semimythical kings, the ogisos, and in the 13th century they invited Prince Oranmiyan of Ife to rule them. His son Eweka is regarded as the first oba, or king, of Benin, though authority would remain for many years with a hereditary order of local chiefs. Late in the…

bridge: Stone arch bridges: ogival arch by concealing the angle at the crown and by starting the curves of the arches vertically in their springings from the piers. This elliptical shape of arch, in which the rise-to-span ratio was as low as 1:7, became known as basket-handled and has…

Layli Long Soldier: Early life: An enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux (Oceti Sakowin) Tribe, Layli Long Soldier grew up in the Southwest. In 2018 she told Poets & Writers magazine, “I don’t have a single hometown. But I have lived in Santa Fe [New Mexico] the longest and feel most at home [there].” She…

Oglala National Grassland, federally recognized prairie grassland of northwestern Nebraska, U.S. The designated national grassland covers a noncontiguous area of some 150 square miles (390 square km) in the Nebraska panhandle, including scattered parcels of land in Sioux and Dawes counties

Layli Long Soldier: Early life: An enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux (Oceti Sakowin) Tribe, Layli Long Soldier grew up in the Southwest. In 2018 she told Poets & Writers magazine, “I don’t have a single hometown. But I have lived in Santa Fe [New Mexico] the longest and feel most at home [there].” She…

Montecristo Island, member of the Arcipelago Toscano, in the Tyrrhenian Sea, between the Italian mainland and Corsica, south of the island of Elba. Part of Livorno province, the islet is mountainous, rising to 2,116 ft (645 m), with an area of 6 sq mi (16 sq km). It is a hunting preserve owned by

William Cavendish, 1st duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne was a Royalist commander during the English Civil Wars and a noted patron of poets, dramatists, and other writers. The son of Sir Charles Cavendish, he attended St. John’s College, Cambridge, and through inheritances and royal favour became

Richard James Oglesby was the governor of Illinois (1865–69, 1873, 1885–89) and a U.S. senator (1873–79). Oglesby, the son of Jacob and Isabella Watson Oglesby, was born into a farming family, and his father was a member of the Kentucky legislature. Orphaned in 1833 following the deaths of his

Oglethorpe University, private, coeducational institution of higher learning in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. The university comprises nine divisions offering undergraduate study in the arts, humanities, business, and sciences. It also offers a master’s degree program in early childhood education. The

James Edward Oglethorpe was an English army officer, philanthropist, and founder of the British colony of Georgia in America. Educated at the University of Oxford, he entered the army in 1712 and joined the Austrian army fighting the Turks in 1717. On his return to England in 1722, he entered

Lake Iseo: It is fed by the Oglio River, a tributary of the Po River, which enters the northern end near Lovere from the deep, wide Val (valley) Camonica and leaves the southern end at Sarnico. Monte Isola, in the centre of the lake, is Italy’s largest lacustrine island (area 5 square…

Ogma, ancient Irish god portrayed as a swarthy man whose battle ardor was so great that he had to be chained and held back by other warriors until the right moment for military action occurred. Ogham script, an Irish writing system dating from the 4th century ce, seems to have been named for him,

Ogmios, Celtic god of Gaul identified with the Roman Hercules. He was portrayed as an old man with swarthy skin and armed with a bow and club. He was also a god of eloquence, and in that aspect he was represented as drawing along a company of men whose ears were chained to his tongue. Ogmios’ Irish

Bridgend: Ogmore Castle, situated in the Ogmore river valley between Bridgend town and Ogmore-by-the-Sea, is one of these; it was founded in 1116 by William de Londres, and its stone keep is one of the earliest built in Wales. Others are Coity Castle (also built in…

Giotto: Roman period of Giotto: …bearing his trademark, whereas the Ognissanti Madonna, unsigned and virtually undocumented, is so superlative in quality that it is accepted as entirely by his hand.

Bernardo Daddi: …completed in 1328 for the Church of Ognissanti is typical of his best work. Numerous panel paintings by the artist are to be found in museums in Europe and North America.

Orbiting Geophysical Observatory (OGO), any of a series of six unmanned scientific satellites launched by the United States from 1964 to 1969. Equipped with a complex of magnetometers, these orbiting satellites were designed to study the Earth’s magnetosphere (i.e., zone of strong magnetic forces

Galgodon Highlands, region of broken mountain terrain, northern Somalia, eastern Africa. It lies parallel to the Gulf of Aden south of the “burnt” Guban coastal plain, and extends from the Ethiopian border in the west to Cape Gwardafuy (Caseyr) in the east. Rising abruptly from the Guban, the

Orbiting Geophysical Observatory (OGO), any of a series of six unmanned scientific satellites launched by the United States from 1964 to 1969. Equipped with a complex of magnetometers, these orbiting satellites were designed to study the Earth’s magnetosphere (i.e., zone of strong magnetic forces

Ögödei was the son and successor of the Mongol ruler Genghis Khan, who greatly expanded the Mongol Empire. The third son of Genghis, Ögödei succeeded his father in 1229. He was the first ruler of the Mongols to call himself khagan (“great khan”); his father used only the title khan. He made his

Ogoja, town, Cross River state, southeastern Nigeria, on the road from Abakaliki. A major trade center (yams, cassava [manioc], corn [maize], rice, palm oil and kernels, kola nuts), it is mainly inhabited by the Ekoi peoples. Ogoja is the headquarters of a local government council and the site of a

Golden Week, series of four holidays closely spaced together and observed at the end of April and beginning of May in Japan. The four holidays are Shōwa Day (April 29), Constitution Day (May 3), Greenery Day (May 4), and Children’s Day (May 5). Showa Day (Showa no Hi), first celebrated in 2007, is

Ken Saro-Wiwa: …to the causes of the Ogoni, a minority ethnic group that numbered about 500,000 people. In mid-1992 he broadened the reach of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People, an organization he led. In particular, he focused on Britain, where Shell had one of its headquarters. He criticized…

Ken Saro-Wiwa: …fellow activists, known as the Ogoni Nine, were executed by hanging, which aroused international condemnation and led to calls for economic sanctions against Nigeria, and the country was suspended from the Commonwealth a day after the executions. Shell later announced its commitment to a natural gas project worth nearly $4…

Sandusky, city, seat (1838) of Erie county, northern Ohio, U.S. It lies along Sandusky Bay (Lake Erie’s largest natural harbour [there bridged to Port Clinton]), about 60 miles (100 km) west of Cleveland. In the 18th century the French and British established trading posts in the area, and Fort

Ogooué River, stream of west-central Africa, flowing in Gabon for almost its entire course and draining an area of almost 86,000 square miles (222,700 square km). It rises in Congo (Brazzaville) on the eastern slopes of the Massif du Chaillu and flows northwest through Gabon past Franceville and

Bunka-Bunsei period, in Japanese history, the era from 1804 to 1829, which witnessed an urban cultural scene unmatched since the Genroku period (1688–1704). The austere reforms and sumptuary laws passed under Matsudaira Sadanobu in the late 18th century were soon followed by a period of extravagant

Grace Ogot was a Kenyan author of widely anthologized short stories and novels who also held a ministerial position in Kenya’s government. One of the few well-known woman writers in Kenya, Ogot was the first woman to have fiction published by the East African Publishing House. Her stories—which

African art: Gabon: The art of the Ogowe tribes, particularly the Mpongwe, is closely tied to death rituals. Their masks, painted white to symbolize death, represent dead female ancestors, though they are worn by male relatives of the deceased.